We will find a way
by PearlofAtlantis76
Summary: The events on this story all happen post "Enemy at the Gate" in a possible season 6, probably season 7, since they also follow the events created on "Atlantis Rising: - the Virtual series" the Virtual season 6 of Stargate Atlantis. So for a better understanding of my story, you might want to read "Atlantis Rising" first. :)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** I would like to say thank you to all the reviews given to my first story "Breakfast in Atlantis". Thank you so much for reading it. :) And just to clarify a few things, I know that **unfortunately** Elizabeth was _presumed _dead, that's right **_presumed_** dead on the show. I invite you all to please read this virtual continuation of Stargate Atlantis, a virtual season 6 called "Atlantis Rising", and you will see that my stories are kind of a follow up of that. :)

**Chapter 1**

**Atlantis conference room**

"Well that Ancient ship, the Travellers found on the Nibor system, sure seems to be worth a visit." Woolsey said.

"Yeah, definitely." Rodney begun. "But unfortunately with most of the science teams busy with the discoveries from M7L-787, there isn't a spare team available to go off-world right now." Rodney said sounding a little bit frustrated.

"Well, but according to the Travellers' intel, the ship seems to be mostly operational." Woolsey said. "The only reason they asked for our help was because they still need someone to initialise the remaining of the systems in order for the ship to be able to fly."

"You mean someone with the ATA gene". John spoke.

"That's right, Colonel." Woolsey replied. "There is also that strange lab on board they don't seem to be able to figure out what it is for."

"Hence the need for one of our science teams to be on board that ship as soon as possible." Rodney said.

"Definitely." Zelenka added.

"Well, in that case, if the science teams can't go there, why don't we bring the ship here instead?" John suggested.

"That thought had crossed my mind." Woolsey said. "But since we are short on personnel right now, the only pilot available is you, Colonel. But I will also need you to be here for the meeting with the Ascane. They are a military society and it would be better to introduce them to our military commander as soon as possible."

"Yeah, but they will only be here in two days." Rodney interrupted. "There will be more than enough time for Sheppard to get to the Ancient ship and bring it back here."

"So what are we waiting for?" Sheppard said. "I am ready to go."

"I was thinking that maybe Dr. Weir could go along with you, Colonel." Woolsey said. "She can begin the translation of the logs from the Ancient ship, while the ship is being brought here to Atlantis. I am guessing it will make things more expedite."

"Yes, because in that way, once the ship gets here, we can immediately start working on it, without having to wait for the linguistics department's team to go on board and do the translations". Zelenka said.

"There is only one problem." Rodney interrupted. "Elizabeth is off-world right now."

"She should be returning shortly." Woolsey said. "Meanwhile, Colonel, I guess you could go ahead and start preparing a Jumper."

Woolsey ended the meeting there and they all started leaving the conference room.

Suddenly, Chuck's announcement, of an off-world activation, is heard.

"Chuck" Woolsey said approaching the technician.

"It's Major Lorne's IDC, Sir." Chuck said.

A few moments later, the figures of Major Lorne, Elizabeth, Teyla, Kanaan and a few Marines, emerged from the shimmering blue puddle.

"How are the negotiations with the Pulgari?" Woolsey asked to the newly arrived group.

"Everything seems to be going well." Elizabeth answered, not sounding totally convinced. "At least according to the Pulgari's governor."

"I guess we can say that everything went well as far as the Pulgari goes." Teyla added.

"We all know how stubborn the Pulgari can be." This time it was Kanaan who spoke.

"So does Elizabeth." John said smirking.

"Well," Elizabeth said with a smile and a raised eyebrow, her gaze on John.

Woolsey cleared his throat.

"Colonel Sheppard will be departing shortly for the Nibor system, in the hopes of bringing the Ancient ship, found by the Travellers, to Atlantis." Woolsey started. "Dr. Weir, I know this is a bit sudden, but I would like you to go along with Colonel Sheppard.

"While I am bringing the Ancient ship here, you can begin the translations of the ship's logs, in order to make things more expedite. This way, when we get here, the science's teams will be able to go on board, with no further delays." John explained when he noticed Elizabeth's puzzling look.

"I have yet to download the report related with the Pulgari's negotiations, but after that, I am all yours." Elizabeth said, looking at John.

"Do not worry, Elizabeth. Kanaan and I can do that for you." Teyla offered with a smile.

"That's settled then." Woolsey said.

"When do we leave?" Elizabeth asked turning to John.

"In an hour." John replied. Turning then to Major Lorne, John ordered. "Major, I want you to assemble some teams, that will then accompany the science teams on board the Ancient ship.

"Yes, Sir." Major Lorne acknowledged.

TO BE CONTINUED…

***Thank you for reading.*** :) :D


	2. Chapter 2

**Jumper**

"You're awfully quiet." John noticed.

"Oh, I am sorry. I am trying to figure out how should I start the translations on this Ancient ship. I am assuming, it must be a research ship. Otherwise, there wouldn't be any point on having a lab on board." Elizabeth said looking from her tablet to John.

"I guess." John said. "But I am pretty sure you will have no problems with it."

John glanced over his shoulder, at the backpack full of books, Elizabeth had brought from Atlantis.

"Yeah…" Elizabeth said with a sheepish smile. John smiled back at her.

Someone trying to hail them interrupted them.

"This is Lt. Colonel John Sheppard." John said in reply to the hail.

"I am Kytoria from the Travelers." A woman said. Her image was now showing on the HUD.

"We came here because of the Ancient ship you…" John began.

"Of course, please follow my ship." Kytoria said interrupting curtly.

"Okay." John said drawling.

The connection between the two ships was terminated.

"That was interesting." Elizabeth said.

"Yeah…" John agreed.

Some moments later, John and Elizabeth found themselves alone aboard the Ancient ship. Kytoria returned to her own ship, after explaining that she has orders to escort the Ancient Ship back to Atlantis. By now, John had already activated some of the remaining systems the Travelers hadn't been able to initialise due to the lack of the ATA gene, so both he and Elizabeth were scrutinizing the outside of the mysterious lab. Inside, they came across some sort of interface.

"Let's see if I can initialise it." John said.

Elizabeth stepped back and John moved a little bit closer to the interface. It immediately activated, once John waved his hand over it. Elizabeth smiled and her eyes now seemed to be full of excitement. She then approached the interface, where a lot of data, in Ancient, could now be seen.

"Wow!" John said.

"Definitely wow!" Elizabeth agreed.

Elizabeth grabbed her tablet and tried to connect it to the interface.

"You know, this will probably take some time." Elizabeth spoke to John.

"Okay." John said drawling. "I should probably head to the bridge anyway, to see if we, or I, can make this ship fly us back to Atlantis."

"Have fun, captain." Elizabeth said smiling.

"See you in a bit." John said and started down the hall towards the bridge.

TO BE CONTINUED…

***Thank you for reading.*** :) :D


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **Thank you all, so much, for reading and for all the reviews. :) I am glad you are all enjoying this story, too. I sure hope this multi chapter story will meet your expectations.

John and Elizabeth alone, on an Ancient ship. ;) Easy mission, hmm…

Thank you so much to my friend Janus from betaying chapters 2 and 3. :)

* * *

><p>The Ancient ship was now heading back through hyperspace towards Atlantis. John had set their course and engaged the autopilot, so now he was heading back towards the lab where he had left Elizabeth.<p>

He should check on her, she had been awfully quiet. He picked up the pace, and his heart started beating a little bit faster. He had checked the Ancient ship with the biometric sensor and there was no one else but them aboard the ship. Then again, he should have learned by now that here in Pegasus, anything is possible.

John felt relieved when he saw that Elizabeth was still there, near the interface, unharmed, just very quiet. He approached her, doing his best not to startle her. She seemed to be in some kind of a trance.

"Elizabeth…?" John said.

"John!" Elizabeth replied, snapping from her deep trance.

"What's wrong?" John asked.

"Good, you're here. I was about to call you." Elizabeth said with a grin.

John could tell, just by looking at her and by the tone in her voice, that she had found something good.

"According to the database… this ship… was one of the ships the Ancients used to destroy Asuras. You know…the first time, when the Ancients decided to destroy all the Replicators, once they decided to end the experiment they were doing with them." Elizabeth explained.

"Really?!" John said in astonishment.

John opened his mouth and then closed it.

"Does that mean there's a chance that this ship might be infected with nanites?!" John said, freaking out a bit.

"No... At least I don't think so, because according to the database, this ship was used only for software development and upload, it doesn't have a nanite-generating machine. And besides, if it was infected, I think we'd know about it by now, or at least the Travelers would, since they found the ship and boarded it some time ago." Elizabeth explained.

"I dunno if that's good news, or not... might explain why they left no one of their people aboard..." John said.

"That would only make sense if they already knew about the contents of the database, and they lack both the knowledge of the Ancient language and the ATA gene." Elizabeth interrupted.

"I guess you're right, but after everything that happened with the Replicators, I'd suggest a bit of caution." John said.

John approached the interface, standing now beside Elizabeth. Sometimes John still couldn't believe they had actually found her. So much time had passed that no one, in Atlantis, ever would have expected to see the _real_ Elizabeth Weir being returned to them.

"And there's more." Elizabeth said. "According to the data, this lab was used to store the assimilation research archive."

"You mean…" John trailed off.

"Yes!" Elizabeth said with excitement.

"You think Rodney will be able to figure out something to help you?" John said smiling and looking at Elizabeth's excitement.

"John, do you know what this means?!" Elizabeth said grinning.

John could tell she hadn't really paid any attention to what he was trying to say.

"Yeah…" John said chuckling. Never the less, he was feeling a little bit incredulous about their discovery.

Elizabeth suddenly turned to him and putting her hands around his neck, she embraced him tightly. John, after a moment, embraced her back.

"John, I…" Elizabeth whispered close to John's ear.

"I know." John said smiling into her hair.

Elizabeth held him even tighter. John was feeling surprised by what she was doing. Since she had returned, she didn't seem to like much physical contact.

John suddenly pulled away from the hug, and gazed at her, his hands rising to her arms. He was now so close to her, he could feel her breath on his skin. Elizabeth looked up at him, searching his face for a clue to his thoughts right there, on that very moment. It didn't take her long to find the answer she was looking for. Because right there, on that instant, John's lips descended on her own.

TO BE CONTINUED…

***Thank you for reading.*** :) :D


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Hello everyone! I would like to apologise for having kept you all waiting for this update for so long. Chapter 5 is almost ready, so hopefully you will not have to wait for it too much. I hope you will all enjoy this chapter. :)

Thank you all, so much, for reading the previews chapters and for all the reviews. :)

Thank you also so much to my friend Janus for the precious help with this chapter. :)

Chapter 4

John and Elizabeth were forced to break the kiss when they heard something that resembled an explosion from the rear part of the ship and suddenly, an alarm sounded. The Ancient ship had immediately dropped out of hyperspace.

"What was that?" Elizabeth asked. "What happened?"

"It seems we dropped out of hyperspace." John said, pulling away from her.

"How's that possible?" Elizabeth asked once again "We aren't even near Atlantis yet! It should take us at least a few more hours…"

"Something is not right…" John said. "I need to get back to the bridge."

"I'm going with you." Elizabeth said.

John hesitated for a moment. "Okay. Let's go." John finally said.

**Bridge**

"You were right; we dropped out way too soon." Elizabeth said.

"I'd have to say - this time I'm not glad to be...Oh, crap!" John said and then continued. "The sensors just picked up a Wraith hive ship closing in on our position!"

Suddenly the Wraith hive ship opened fire on the Ancient ship.

"Not good, not good!" John said. "The initial hit took out our drones before I had time to raise our shield!"

"What the hell are these Wraiths doing here, in the middle of nowhere?!" Elizabeth said.

"We can ask them later! Right now, we need to find a way to fix our weapons!" John said in reply to Elizabeth's question.

They were hit once again, but the shield was holding for the moment.

"I need to get to the drone chair!" John said and then added. "Stay on the bridge and see what you can do about the drones!"

"I'm on it!" Elizabeth said walking towards a console.

Meanwhile, John was on his way to the Chair room.

**Chair Room**

John had reached the Chair room and was contacting Elizabeth over the radio. "I'm in the chair, how's it going?"

Elizabeth's reply came promptly over the radio. "I'm working on it! Give me a second…"

"Sure, take your time." John said wryly.

"Okay, try it now!" Elizabeth finally said.

John was trying to fire the drones, but nothing seemed to be happening.

"Damn it!" John said. "I had it for a moment, but there's something wrong with the…"

"John, the drones' controls have just shut down completely…" Elizabeth said, interrupting him.

"Great!" John said.

"I'm sorry John, there's nothing I can do!" Elizabeth said after a while.

"Try again! We have to blast them, 'cause without the hyperdrive, we can't escape!" John said.

"John, I could push these buttons at random for hours and still not find a way to solve our problems." Elizabeth said. "If McKay was here, I'm sure he could fix it in a minute, but I'm not an engineer, nor a scientist."

"There must be something we can do!" John said and then added. "We've got guns on this ship, right?"

"What do you mean?" Elizabeth said in a surprised tone.

Elizabeth could sense his frustration, but she could just as easily see the wheels turning in his head.

"This is an Aurora-class ship; it has to have some other weapons on it!" John said and he continued. "I've seen the Replicators fire some sort of energy-pulse cannons from their ships many times."

Elizabeth was beginning to see John's point. "Just a moment…" She said and then made an input into the console on the bridge.

"You're right, there are multiple cannons and at least half of them seem to still be working, but they have to be operated from here." Elizabeth explained.

"Well, do it." John instructed.

"I can't! I don't know how." Elizabeth said. "And they also need someone with the Ancient gene to initialise them."

"What?!" John asked with a surprised tone in his voice. "I've initialised the ship's weapons' systems already!"

" I don't know, but you better come up here fast!" Elizabeth said.

"Dammit! I'm on my way!" John said, a tinge of irritation in his voice. "How's our shield holding?"

"Not so good, but it seems that the Wraith are not hitting us with their full arsenal." Elizabeth replied. "They probably want to drain our shield and board the ship to take as many of us as possible, alive."

John was once again on his way back to the bridge. Still maintaining radio contact with Elizabeth, he said, wryly. "In that case, they will be disappointed with a skeletal-crew lunch!"

"Not exactly the kind of joke I would laugh at!" Elizabeth said. There was a funny tone in her voice.

**Bridge**

John was now entering the bridge. "I hope to spare them the trouble of finding out." He said. "Let's see what these cannons can do!"

John put his hand on a console and activated the ship's pulse cannons. The console lighted up and displayed a targeting system.

"Alright, I've targeted their ship and I'm returning fire now!" John said.

The Ancient ship started firing a volley of yellowish energy-bolts towards the Wraith hive ship. After a minute, the hive ship started taking significant damage and in response, it started firing on the Ancient ship with all available cannons. Soon, the Ancient ship started taking severe hits all along its length. The shield was still holding, but it started fluctuating around the middle areas of the hull.

"Our shield is at 10%!" John announced.

"Are we gonna make it?" Elizabeth asked.

"I hope so!" John said, optimistically.

John was now looking towards the Wraith hive ship. "C'mon you overgrown cockroach, die already!"

Suddenly, Kytoria's ship dropped out of hyperspace and positioned itself between the Ancient ship and the Wraith hive ship, in order to somewhat block the hive's fire.

"Colonel Sheppard, this is Kytoria." Kytoria's voice was heard over the comm.

"I'm kind of busy right now!" John said in reply to Kytoria. "See if you can take out their weapons, our shield is almost gone!"

Immediately after, John saw a console suddenly sparking, really close to where Elizabeth was standing; it started to smoke. Elizabeth backed away from it.

"Colonel, you have to jump into hyperspace, immediately. We must not allow the destruction of this ship." Kytoria said over the comm.

"The idea has crossed my mind." John retorted. "But our hyperdrive had some sort of odd malfunction and we dropped out of hyperspace right into an ambush!"

"You should have repaired it and jumped back into hyperspace, instead of risking the destruction of the ship!" Kytoria said with a snappish tone of voice.

"I'd love to, but they started shooting at us the moment we dropped out of hyperspace! John pointed out sharply. "I didn't exactly have time to play with the funky hyperdrive! Now, could you please…"

The Ancient ship' shield was almost depleted and there were severe fluctuations all over the ship. Some of the hits started penetrating the shield and damaging the ship's hull.

"Colonel, we don't have time to debate now!" Kytoria said. "Access the hyperdrive's controls and reroute the power through the auxiliary conduits! It should bring the hyperdrive back online!"

"What?!" John and Elizabeth exchanged perplexed looks; the technical language of the instructions baffled them. "You don't even know what's wrong with the damn…"

"Trust me, it will work!" Kytoria said interrupting him. "As soon as you can, jump into hyperspace. Meanwhile, we will try to hold them off."

Kytoria' ship started firing on the Wraith hive ship and drawing their fire.

"Hope you're right!" John said. "Keep firing with everything you've got!"

John made several inputs into the console and successfully rerouted the power to the hyperdrive.

"Is it working?" Elizabeth asked.

"I think so." John replied. "We are ready to jump!"

"Then, let's get the hell outta here!" Elizabeth said.

"Sounds like a plan!" John said and then added. "I'll be damned if I'll let some Wraith take this ship away from us!"

The Ancient ship jumped into hyperspace, while Kytoria' ship was still fighting with the Wraith hive ship.

"That was close…" John said admittedly. "I have to check the damage we took during the battle."

**A few minutes later.**

"Hmmm…" John murmured. "Not exactly what I was hoping to find…" He paused.

"How's the ship doing?" Elizabeth enquired.

John pointed to a display. "Well, it's not too bad, but we lost the shield and we also took some pretty good hits here, in the middle section of the hull." John explained.

While John was showing to Elizabeth the damage on the display of the ship' schematic, another alarm sounded and they once again dropped out of hyperspace. Immediately after, the ship slowed down, and a strong impact, from the ship's middle section, was heard, and the whole ship shook like it was hit by something.

"Now what?" Elizabeth asked with displeasure.

John approached another console. "It seems we dropped out of hyperspace... Again!"

Elizabeth was looking at the readings. "We should probably investigate this matter." Elizabeth offered. "It sounded much worse than the first time."

They started down the corridor towards the engineering room.

"Why would a Wraith hive ship be here anyway?" Elizabeth asked. "I thought there was no Wraith activity in this area."

"Beats me." John said. "But we need to get as far as possible from here and fast!"

**Engineering room**

"It seems the hyperdrive was hit during the attack." John said while scanning the hyperdrive. "It's not too badly damaged, but it will need a few repairs before it's operable again. Without them, it probably won't get us very far."

"What now?" Elizabeth asked. "What are our options?"

"We'll see…" John replied and then paused. "Come on." He then said to Elizabeth. "Let's get back to the bridge and determine our current position."

TO BE CONTINUED…

***Thank you for reading. * **:) :D


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Hello everyone! Thank you all, so much, for reading the previews chapters and for all the reviews. :)

If you want to find out why is the ship mysteriously dropping out of hyperspace, you will just have to stick around. ;) :D

Thank you also so much to my friend Janus for the precious help with this chapter. :)

**Chapter 5**

**Bridge**

"I'll try to find a nearby planet with a Stargate, preferably one in range of sublights." John said while searching through the ancient star charts in the ship's database. "It may take a while though."

"Let me help you." Elizabeth said seating behind another console.

After a while:

"This sucks." John said, a bit frustrated.

"Still nothing?" Elizabeth asked.

"There seems to be none." John was definitely frustrated.

"Same here, I haven't found any suitable planet." Elizabeth admitted.

"At least not in range of sublights." John said rubbing the back of his neck

"What are you trying to say?" Elizabeth enquired.

"Well, there IS a planet with a gate in this small corner of the galaxy." John said pointing at a dot representing a planet with a Stargate on the star map. "The only problem is that we'd have to make a short jump into hyperspace to get there and I'm not sure the ship can take it without some repairs."

"What's that?" Elizabeth said, noticing a new light blinking on the main console.

"Oh, crap!" John said realizing that their problems were far from over.

"What is it?" Elizabeth said a little bit alarmed.

"Now we're venting atmosphere!" John explained.

"How bad?" Elizabeth wanted to know.

John was now looking at the console' screen and was pointing at the red blinking sections in the middle of the ship. "I need to seal off these sections immediately!" John said. He then entered a few instructions on the console. "There! That should hold the leak for now. Or at least slow it down a bit."

"Maybe we could simply leave the ship here, go back to the Jumper and try to sit this one out until help arrives, or at least until we figure out what to do?" Elizabeth suggested.

"That **would** be the safest thing to do, but the hangar bay is open to space and we can't get to the Jumper..." John said and then continued. "As much as I hate it, we'll have to take the ship into hyperspace."

"May I ask how you imagine doing that with a broken hyperdrive?" Elizabeth asked apprehensively.

"It's damaged, but not completely blown." John said reassuringly. "There's a chance it could get us there."

"And then what?" Elizabeth said unsurely. "Without the jumper we can't reach the gate."

"Well, we could try to **somehow**... use the ship's computer and comm system to activate the DHD on the planet, and get it to dial Atlantis, so we can radio for help." John offered.

"Assuming the gate isn't in space... and that we manage to do what you suggested." Elizabeth was giving John a contemplative look.

"Yeah, there's **that**." John granted. "But if we sit here for too long it's not gonna matter because we lost life support as well, and if we start leaking air again... well, you _know_."

"In that case, let's cross our fingers and hope we get to that planet." Elizabeth said adjusting herself in her seat.

"**Okay**, hold on to your seat and cross your fingers." John was now entering a few instructions on the console. "We'll get there... I hope."

The Ancient ship jumped into hyperspace.

The bridge of the ship was vibrating and shaking, and a few wall consoles sparked.

"Is the hyperdrive gonna make it?" Elizabeth enquired.

"Hyperdrive's doing good, the ship' structural integrity is our biggest problem now!" John said. "Hang on, we're almost there!"

In a minute or so, the Ancient ship jumped out of hyperspace and in a few seconds a strong impact from the ship's middle section was heard again and the whole ship shook like it was hit by something.

"What was that?!" Elizabeth cried out suddenly in surprise.

"I don't know, but we're venting atmosphere again and fast!" John observed. "Hang on, we're going in!"

"Please don't tell me you're planning to land the ship on the planet?!" Elizabeth asked.

"I'll have to! The hyperdrive and whole middle section is now open to space as well! If we make it down in one piece, the repairs will have to be made on the ground!" John explained. "Travelers will definitely have fun putting this ship back together!"

John set a course for the planet. Once they reached its orbit, John made a quick scan to determine the location of the Stargate, but to his unpleasant surprise, he couldn't locate it.

"This can't be right!" John exclaimed.

"What?!" Elizabeth asked in surprise.

"I can't find the Stargate!" John stated.

"Is there a problem with the sensors?!" Elizabeth wanted to know.

"No, they're working fine." John confirmed. " But they should have located the gate within seconds if it's there and is operable." John rubbed the back of his neck. "Give me a second!"

John scanned the entire surface and soon he found a suitable place to land the ship.

"Are you sure about this?" Elizabeth asked from her seat behind a console. "I mean, are you sure that this is how you want to...?"

"At this point, we've got nothing to lose!" John said with a shrug and a chuckle.

"Besides, how hard can it be?!" He added.

"You tell me!" Elizabeth said.

John smiled a bit. "It'll be a walk in the park!"

"If you say so!" Elizabeth said, looking straight ahead and holding herself to the arms of her chair.

John looked at Elizabeth. "Alright. It's show time." John rubbed his hands. "Let's land this thing!"

Elizabeth nodded at him smiling reassuringly.

"Here we go!" John announced.

The Ancient ship, in spite of the inertial dampeners, was now strongly shaking. Suddenly, the ship entered the atmosphere and was now flying like a giant meteor towards the surface. A few moments later, they were close to the landing site.

"Brace for impact!" John yelled.

Shortly after, the ship crash-landed and started sliding on the ground, mowing down everything in its path, until it finally came into a complete stop.

"Well, that was different." John said smirking. "And actually not so bad." John was feeling proud of himself.

"Right... we're still in one piece." Elizabeth said with a raised eyebrow. "Can we still use the sensors to try to find the gate, in case it's buried or inoperable for whatever reason?"

"From orbit - no problem, though it would take time." John explained and then continued. "Down here, the sensors will be limited to a small portion of the planet." John activated the ship' scanners. "While we're at it, we might as well check the neighbourhood for Wraith or possible surprises."

John scanned the planet for the Stargate and for life signs. "I'm picking up some life signs further to the East of our position... no luck with the gate though."

"Considering our situation and supplies, how long do you think we can remain here?" Elizabeth asked.

"A couple of weeks, but hopefully we won't be here that long." John said. "Kytoria will probably figure out this is the closest planet with a gate, and once that happens, she will get us out of here in no time."

"Assuming she survived the battle with the Wraith and was able to escape." Elizabeth said a little bit skeptical.

"Yeah..." John agreed. "But right now, we've to figure out what's the best course of action."

"Well, let's see: if we start by assuming that we can't find the Stargate on this planet…" Elizabeth began.

"Our only other option would be to use the ship' subspace comm to contact Atlantis." John continued.

"Which also might mean revealing our position to the hive that attacked us." Elizabeth added following his reasoning.

"Or, we can take the Jumper and try to find the Stargate." John offered.

"Tell you what, why don't you go and fly the jumper out, while I check the sensors for human life signs and a possible settlement." Elizabeth suggested.

"Sure, I'll go get the jumper out, but why would you expect humans here?" John asked.

"The Ancient star chart says that this planet has a Stargate, or at least had one at some point, so it is possible that it was also inhabited." Elizabeth explained. "And it might still be."

"Good thinking." John admitted. "If it is, maybe the locals would know where the gate is... or was. I'll go get the Jumper."

A few minutes later, John entered the hangar bay and saw the Jumper turned over on one side and it looked like it has had a crash-landing of its own.

"What the hell?!" John exclaimed to himself, half way between puzzlement and anger. He reached for his ear to key his radio. "Elizabeth, can you run a quick diagnostic of the hangar bay' systems and check the logs?"

Elizabeth's voice came promptly over the radio. "Why, what happened?" Her voice was calm and soothing.

"The Jumper looks like someone was playing a game of football with it!" John described over the radio link.

"I'm running the diagnostic now." Elizabeth continued over the radio. "Does it look like it can fly?"

"I dunno, I'll have to check...**if** I manage to get inside." John said over the radio, while examining the Jumper from the outside. "But I'm not too optimistic."

"The logs indicate that the hangar bay lost all power 2 hours ago." Elizabeth informed. "Probably when we were attacked."

"That would explain the Jumper's condition and the structural damage in this area." John deduced.

"How so?" Elizabeth inquired.

"After the battle, do you remember the noise we heard, every time we dropped outta hyperspace?" John started to explain. "Like if the ship was being hit hard by something?"

"Yes, what about it?" Elizabeth asked.

"That was the sound of our Jumper slamming into the hangar's bulkheads!" John affirmed. "After the hangar bay lost power, both inertial dampeners and artificial gravity were off line."

"So, that explains the structural damage and why the ship was venting atmosphere." Elizabeth said in retrospective.

"Yes, it seems so." John agreed. "But it still doesn't explain why we dropped outta hyperspace right into an ambush! Or how Kytoria knew, in an instant, what's wrong with the hyperdrive and how to bypass it."

"She probably familiarized herself well with the ship' systems." Elizabeth assumed. "This ship was meant to be her new ship, remember?"

John was feeling very skeptical. "Maybe..."

"And she did stay behind, to hold the Wraith off, while we escaped." Elizabeth continued.

"All that stands, but it's kinda an odd coincidence, don't you think?" John said, still in doubt. "And also, her almost immediate appearance after we were attacked."

"You think the encounter with that hive wasn't a coincidence?" Elizabeth asked.

"I don't know what to think anymore." John replied. "But I'd like to check something out." John suddenly had an idea.

"Okay, I'll run the diagnostic and see the logs from just before the attack." Elizabeth informed.

"You do that and let me know if you find something interesting. I'll go check the hyperdrive." John said over the radio, while exiting the hangar bay. " I want to get to the bottom of this."

A few moments later, John was in a corridor leading to the hyperdrive section. He stopped near a bulkhead that had been destroyed by an explosion, and by the looks of it, the explosion severed the main power conduit between the hyperdrive and the ship's power generator.

Elizabeth was, once again, contacting John over the radio. "I've just checked the logs." She told him. "And it looks like the sensors detected some sort of structural damage, at the time we got out of hyperspace, just before the battle. But there's no indication of any malfunction or power surge that could have caused it."

"Yeah, I'm looking at the spot right now and I think this was no accident." John observed. "Someone blew this up on purpose."

"What do you mean?" Elizabeth asked, incredulous.

"The explosion was too small and focused to be an accident." John clarified. "Someone placed a charge here, behind the bulkhead and activated it to blow the power conduit, so that we would drop outta hyperspace, right into an ambush!"

"Who could have done something like that?" Elizabeth asked.

"I have no idea…" John replied. "But I don't like it one bit!"

"The good news is." Elizabeth told him. "I've located human life signs, not far from here."

"How many?" John wanted to know.

"A few dozens in a small area." Elizabeth said. "Possibly a settlement."

"Okay." John said optimistically and rubbing his hands together. "For now, let's go check out the folks from this planet. We can leave the Jumper for later."

"I'm on my way." Elizabeth told him and then disconnected the radio link.

John and Elizabeth met in front of the airlock that would lead them outside.

"The settlement is an half hour walk from here." Elizabeth informed. "Let's hope we can establish good relations and a possible alliance with them."

"Maybe we should start by asking them about the Stargate first." John suggested. "And from a safe distance. I'd like to try contacting Atlantis ASAP, just in case someone wants to surprise us again."

"Like who?" Elizabeth asked.

"Well, I don't know." John replied. "Maybe if the locals aren't as friendly as we hope, or in case the Wraith decide to show up."

"Well..." Elizabeth began. "I suppose you could also try your luck with the Jumper on your own, and I could stay here with the ship."

"I'll keep that in mind." John didn't like that idea much either.

Elizabeth smiled. "If there's no Stargate on this planet anymore, the chances of a Wraith attack are very slim. I would be fine on my own, while you search for the gate."

"I'll consider that idea, once and after we meet these people." John said looking at Elizabeth.

"Fair enough." Elizabeth conceded. "Shall we go then?" Elizabeth didn't want to waste anymore time.

TO BE CONTINUED…

***Thank you for reading. * **:) :D


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